The snowmobile industry is competitive, requiring successful companies to continually create new snowmobile features, thereby creating a competitive advantage. A great deal of time and effort has been spent in making snowmobiles more comfortable and enjoyable for their riders. Consumers, in turn, appreciate these conveniences and develop brand loyalty.
One particular aspect of snowmobiling that serves as an inconvenience to consumers is the process of warming a snowmobile's engine. On particularly cold days, a snowmobile should be permitted to idle for as long as ten or fifteen minutes to allow its engine to warm; warm engine oil allows for better lubrication and, therefore, reduced engine wear. Additionally, a warm engine exhibits more complete combustion and better performance.
Heretofore, engine warming has involved the operator of the snowmobile trudging into the cold, starting his or her snowmobile, and staying with the snowmobile while it idled until warm. Additionally, the operator of the snowmobile may be required to wait for hand and thumb warmers to reach their proper temperature. This process is time consuming and needlessly subjects the operator to cold weather.
A snowmobile that eliminated the need for its operator to be physically present while starting and idling the snowmobile would be of great value to its operator. Such a snowmobile would allow its operator to immediately begin riding a warmed-up snowmobile, thereby doing away with the discouraging task of waiting for a cold engine to become warm. Further such a snowmobile could be programmed to automatically perform the task of periodically starting the engine, so as to keep the engine warm.
For the aforestated reasons, it is desirable to devise a means by which a snowmobile engine may be started in the absence of physical presence by its operator. Additionally, for both safety and theft prevention purposes, the scheme should ensure that the snowmobile is immobile while idling without its operator.